Seasonal variability of the zooplankton community in the southwest of the Huanghai Sea (Yellow Sea) Cold Water Mass

Samples were collected with a plankton net in the four seasonal cruises during 2006-2007 to study the seasonal variability of the zooplankton community in the southwest part of Huanghai Sea Cold Water Mass (HSCWM, Yellow Sea Cold Water Mass). The spatial and temporal variations of zooplankton species composition, biomass, abundance and biodiversity were examined. A total of 122 zooplankton species and 30 pelagic larvae were identified in the four cruises. Calanus sinicus and Aidanosagitta crassa were the most dominant species, and Themisto gaudichaudi and Euphausia pacifica were widely distributed in the HSCWM area. The spatial patterns of non-gelatinous zooplankton (removing the high water content groups) were similar to those of the total zooplankton biomass in autumn, but different significantly in the other three seasons. The seasonal means of zooplankton biomass in spring and summer were much higher than that in autumn and winter. The total zooplankton abundance averaged 283.5 ind./m~3 in spring (highest), 192.5 ind./m~3 in summer, 165.5 ind./m~3 in autumn and 65.9 ind./m~3 in winter (lowest), and the non-gelatinous groups contributed the most total abundance. Correlation analysis suggests that the non-gelatinous zooplankton biomass and abundance had a significant positive correlation in the whole year, but the relationship was insignificant between the total zooplankton biomass and abundance in spring and summer. The diversity index H of zooplankton community averaged 1.88 in this study, which was somewhat higher than historical results. Relatively low diversity in summer was related to the high dominance of Calanus sinicus, probably due to the strongest effect of the HSCWM in this season.     

Seasonal response of surface wind to SST perturbation in the Northern Hemisphere

The seasonal response of surface wind speed to sea surface temperature (SST) change in the Northern Hemisphere was investigated using 10 years (2002-2011) high-resolution satellite observations and reanalysis data. The results showed that correlation between surface wind speed perturbations and SST perturbations exhibits remarkable seasonal variation, with more positive correlation is stronger in the cold seasons than in the warm seasons. This seasonality in a positive correlation between SST and surface wind speed is attributable primarily to seasonal changes of oceanic and atmospheric background conditions in frontal regions. The mean SST gradient and the prevailing surface winds are strong in winter and weak in summer. Additionally, the eddy-induced response of surface wind speed is stronger in winter than in summer, although the locations and numbers of mesoscale eddies do not show obvious seasonal features. The response of surface wind speed is apparently due to stability and mixing within the marine atmospheric boundary layer (MABL), modulated by SST perturbations. In the cold seasons, the stronger positive (negative) SST perturbations are easier to increase (decrease) the MABL height and trigger (suppress) momentum vertical mixing, contributing to the positive correlation between SST and surface wind speed. In comparison, SST perturbations are relatively weak in the warm seasons, resulting in a weak response of surface wind speed to SST changes. This result holds for each individual region with energetic eddy activity in the Northern Hemisphere.     

台湾海峡游泳动物群落的空间结构及其季节变化

The Taiwan Strait is a transition zone between the East China Sea and the South China Sea with unique hydrology and a geographical environment that creates special marine community features.To analyze the spatial structure and seasonal changes of the nekton assemblages in the Taiwan Strait,seasonal experimental trawl surveys were conducted during 2006–2007.The results showed that there were two assemblages in the area with different sets of species,and the average similarity within each group varies between 39.38% and 74.20%.By using multivariate statistical analysis and analyzing the distribution of dominant species,we found that the structures of the assemblages had obvious seasonal variation.The middle region from the Putian transect to the Xiamen transect could be considered a mixing area for the two assemblages.The analysis of the relationship between species assemblages and environmental factors indicated that temperature was the most important factor affecting the community structure in cold seasons,and 22.5°C and 17°C could be considered dividing lines for spring and winter,respectively.In warm seasons,the most important factor was water depth,but the relationship with depth was not as significant,with a correlation between 0.264 and 0.399.The seasonal changes of nekton assemblages basically reflected the dynamic currents in the Taiwan Strait.The south coastal assemblage extended to nearly the entire area of the Taiwan Strait along with a strong and intense warm current that shrinks in spring and winter when the southward intrusion of the cold Zhejiang-Fujian coastal current becomes stronger.The impact of shortterm and long-term environmental changes,such as extreme weather,global warming and human activity on nekton assemblages,had been recognized but need further research.Our study on nekton assemblages could be used as a baseline for measuring future changes.     

Preliminary study on concentrations and size distribution of marine aerosols over the East China Sea

In summer and winter, 1987,and in spring and autumn, 1988, the concentrations and size distribution of marine aerosols were measured over the East China Sea and the South Japan Sea. This paper deals with the study on the seasonal variation of the marine aerosols with the meteorological parameters, the differences and the relations between the marine and continental aerosols. The results show that the marine aerosol concentrations and size distribution over the East China Sea have distinct seasonal change characteristics, which may be attributed to the East Asian atmospheric circulation. The size distribution is discussed by using a three-parameter size distribution model.     

北赤道流分岔点与印尼贯穿流的相关分析

Based on monthly mean Simple Ocean Data Assimilation(SODA) products from 1958 to 2007,this study analyzes the seasonal and interannual variability of the North Equatorial Current(NEC) bifurcation latitude and the Indonesian Throughflow(ITF) volume transport. Further,Empirical Mode Decomposition(EMD) method and lag-correlation analysis are employed to reveal the relationships between the NEC bifurcation location,NEC and ITF volume transport and ENSO events. The analysis results of the seasonal variability show that the annual mean location of NEC bifurcation in upper layer occurs at 14.33°N and ITF volume transport has a maximum value in summer,a minimum value in winter and an annual mean transport of 7.75×106 m3/s. The interannual variability analysis indicates that the variability of NEC bifurcation location can be treated as a precursor of El Ni?o. The correlation coefficient between the two reaches the maximum of 0.53 with a time lag of 2 months. The ITF volume transport is positively related with El Ni?o events with a maximum coefficient of 0.60 by 3 months. The NEC bifurcation location is positively correlated with the ITF volume transport with a correlation coefficient of 0.43.     

Simulation of the seasonal thermal structure in the Bohai Sea

The seasonal thermal structure in the Bohai Sea are examined with a three-dimensional boroclinic primitive equation model for shelf sea.The evolution of the seasonal thermal stratification is well simulated.The stratification appears early in April,first in the area off Qinhuangdao and it is well developed in the middle of May.It intensifies with synoptic and neap-spring fluctuations throughout the summer and reaches its maximum in the middle of July.Eventually,it is destroyed at the end of September.There are cold water belts between well-mixed and stratified regions.They are loGated on the mixed side of tidal fronts,and coincide with the isolines for a temperature difference of 1-2℃ between surface and bottom.The sea surface temperature (SST) distribution shows local maxima at the head of three bays and to the south of Qinhuangdao during the summer.The Bohai Sea responds to the variability in the atmospheric forcing and in tides with the synoptic and neap-spring variations of SST,as well as in the stratification and in variable positions of tidal fronts.     

沿海观测站海表温度质量控制和半日特征分析

Sea surface temperature(SST) data obtained from coastal stations in Jiangsu, China during 2010–2014 are quality controlled before analysis of their characteristic semidiurnal and seasonal cycles, including the correlation with the variation of the tide. Quality control of data includes the validation of extreme values and checking of hourly values based on temporally adjacent data points, with 0.15°C/h considered a suitable threshold for detecting abnormal values. The diurnal variation amplitude of the SST data is greater in spring and summer than in autumn and winter. The diurnal variation of SST has bimodal structure on most days, i.e., SST has a significant semidiurnal cycle. Moreover, the semidiurnal cycle of SST is negatively correlated with the tidal data from March to August, but positively correlated with the tidal data from October to January. Little correlation is detected in the remaining months because of the weak coastal–offshore SST gradients. The quality control and understanding of coastal SST data are particularly relevant with regard to the validation of indirect measurements such as satellitederived data.     

北极气旋的季节、年际变化及其与北极海冰、大气遥相关的关系

The seasonal and inter-annual variations of Arctic cyclone are investigated. An automatic cyclone tracking algorithm developed by University of Reading was applied on the basis of European Center for Medium-range Weather Forecasts(ECMWF) ERA-interim mean sea level pressure field with 6 h interval for 34 a period. The maximum number of the Arctic cyclones is counted in winter, and the minimum is in spring not in summer.About 50% of Arctic cyclones in summer generated from south of 70°N, moving into the Arctic. The number of Arctic cyclones has large inter-annual and seasonal variabilities, but no significant linear trend is detected for the period 1979–2012. The spatial distribution and linear trends of the Arctic cyclones track density show that the cyclone activity extent is the widest in summer with significant increasing trend in CRU(central Russia)subregion, and the largest track density is in winter with decreasing trend in the same subregion. The linear regressions between the cyclone track density and large-scale indices for the same period and pre-period sea ice area indices show that Arctic cyclone activities are closely linked to large-scale atmospheric circulations, such as Arctic Oscillation(AO), North Atlantic Oscillation(NAO) and Pacific-North American Pattern(PNA). Moreover,the pre-period sea ice area is significantly associated with the cyclone activities in some regions.     

Multitime scale variations of sea surface temperature in the China seas based on the HadISST dataset

The variability of the sea surface temperature(SST) in the China seas has been studied in seasonal,interannual and interdecadal scales based on the monthly data of HadISST spanning from 1870 to 2007. The main results obtained are SST in the China offshore changes most actively at the seasonal scale with the intensity diminishing from north to south,as the temperature differences between summer and winter reaching 17 and 4 C in the northern and southern areas,respectively. Moreover,seasonal variation near the coastal regions seems relatively stronger than that far from the coastline;significant interannual variations are detected,with the largest positive anomaly occurring in 1998 in the overall area. But as far as different domains are concerned,there exists great diversity,and the difference is also found between winter and summer. Differed from the seasonal variations,where the strongest interannual variability takes place,resides to the south of that of the seasonal ones in the northern section,nevertheless in the South China Sea,the most significant interannual variability is found in the deep basin;interdecadal changes of summer,winter and annual mean SST in different domains likewise present various features. In addition,a common dominant warming in recent 20 a are found in the overall China offshore with the strongest center located in the vicinity of the Changjiang Estuary in the East China Sea,which intensifies as high as 1.3 C during the past 130 a.     

Spatial-temporal variation of phytoplankton community structure in Jiaozhou Bay,China

To better understand the spatial-temporal variation in phytoplankton community structure and its controlling factors in Jiaozhou Bay, Qingdao, North China, four seasonal sampling were carried out in 2017. The phytoplankton community structure and various environmental parameters were examined. The phytoplankton community in the bay was composed of mainly diatoms and dinofl agellates, and several other species of Chrysophyta were also observed. Diatoms were the most dominant phytoplankton group throughout the year, except in spring and winter, when Noctiluca scintillans was co-dominant. High Si/N ratios in summer and fall refl ect the high dominance of diatoms in the two seasons. Temporally, the phytoplankton cell abundance peaked in summer, due mainly to the high temperatures and nutrient concentrations in summer. Spatially, the phytoplankton cell abundance was higher in the northern part of the bay than in the other parts of the bay in four seasons. The diatom cell abundances show signifi cant positive correlations with the nutrient concentrations, while the dinofl agellate cell abundances show no correlation or a negative correlation with the nutrient concentrations but a signifi cant positive correlation with the stratifi cation index. This discrepancy was mainly due to the diff erent survival strategies between diatoms and dinofl agellates. The Shannon-Wiener diversity index ( H′) values in the bay ranged from 0.08 to 4.18, which fell in the range reported in historical studies. The distribution pattern of H′ values was quite diff erent from that of chlorophyll a , indicating that the phytoplankton community structure might have high biomass with a low diversity index. Compared with historical studies, we believe that the dominant phytoplankton species have been changed in recent years due mainly to the changing environment in the Jiaozhou Bay in recent 30 years.     

Indices of strength and location for the North Pacific Subtropical and Subpolar Gyres

The adjustment of the North Pacific Subtropical and Subpolar Gyres towards changes in wind stress leads to different time-scale variabilities, which plays a significant role in climate changes. Based on the Simple Ocean Data Assimilation (SODA) and Global Ocean Data Assimilation System (GODAS) datasets, the variations of the Subtropical and Subpolar Gyres are diagnosed using "three-dimension Ocean Circulation Diagnostic Method", and established three types of index series describe the strength, meridional and depth center of the Subtropical and Subpolar Gyres. The above indices present the seasonal, interannual and interdecadal variabilities of the Subtropical and Subpolar Gyres, which proves well. Both the Gyres are the strongest in winter, but the Subtropical Gyre is the weakest in summer and the Subpolar Gyre is the weakest in autumn. The Subtropical Gyre moves northward from February to March, southward in October, and to the southernmost in around January, while the Subpolar Gyre moves northward in spring, southward in summer, northward again in autumn and reaching the extreme point in winter to the south. The common feature of the interannual and interdecadal variabilities is that the two gyres were weaker and to the north before 1976-1977, while they were stronger and to the south after 1976-1977. The Subpolar Gyre has made a paramount contribution to the variability on interdecadal scales. As is indicated with the Subpolar Gyre strength indices, there was an important shift from weak to strong around 1976-1977, and the correlation coefficient with the North Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) indices was 0.45, which was far better than that between the Subtropical Gyre strength indices and the PDO. Tests show that influenced by small and mesoscale eddies, the magnitude of large-scale gyres strength is strongly dependent on data resolution. But seasonal interannual and interdecadal large-scale variabilities of the two gyres presented with indices is less affected by model resolution.     

Impacts of a wind stress and a buoyancy flux on the seasonal variation of mixing layer depth in the South China Sea

The seasonal variation of mixing layer depth(MLD) in the ocean is determined by a wind stress and a buoyance flux.A South China Sea(SCS) ocean data assimilation system is used to analyze the seasonal cycle of its MLD.It is found that the variability of MLD in the SCS is shallow in summer and deep in winter,as is the case in general.Owing to local atmosphere forcing and ocean dynamics,the seasonal variability shows a regional characteristic in the SCS.In the northern SCS,the MLD is shallow in summer and deep in winter,affected coherently by the wind stress and the buoyance flux.The variation of MLD in the west is close to that in the central SCS,influenced by the advection of strong western boundary currents.The eastern SCS presents an annual cycle,which is deep in summer and shallow in winter,primarily impacted by a heat flux on the air-sea interface.So regional characteristic needs to be cared in the analysis about the MLD of SCS.     

南海沿海季节性海平面异常变化特征及成因分析

Based on sea level, air temperature, sea surface temperature(SST), air pressure and wind data during 1980–2014,this paper uses Morlet wavelet transform, Estuarine Coastal Ocean Model(ECOM) and so on to investigate the characteristics and possible causes of seasonal sea level anomalies along the South China Sea(SCS) coast. The research results show that:(1) Seasonal sea level anomalies often occur from January to February and from June to October. The frequency of sea level anomalies is the most in August, showing a growing trend in recent years. In addition, the occurring frequency of negative sea level anomaly accounts for 50% of the total abnormal number.(2) The seasonal sea level anomalies are closely related to ENSO events. The negative anomalies always occurred during the El Ni?o events, while the positive anomalies occurred during the La Ni?a(late El Ni?o) events. In addition, the seasonal sea level oscillation periods of 4–7 a associated with ENSO are the strongest in winter, with the amplitude over 2 cm.(3) Abnormal wind is an important factor to affect the seasonal sea level anomalies in the coastal region of the SCS. Wind-driven sea level height(SSH) is basically consistent with the seasonal sea level anomalies. Moreover, the influence of the tropical cyclone in the coastal region of the SCS is concentrated in summer and autumn, contributing to the seasonal sea level anomalies.(4) Seasonal variations of sea level, SST and air temperature are basically consistent along the coast of the SCS, but the seasonal sea level anomalies have no much correlation with the SST and air temperature.     

Characteristics of Growth Rate of Coral Porites from Sanya Bay, Hainan Island and its Relationship to Environmental Variables

The time series of annual and seasonal growth rate of two coral Porites, collected at different sites of fringe reef in the Sanya Bay, Hainan Island have been obtained by analyzing X-radiograph of skeletal band. There are obvious seasonal variations of the growth rate in two corals, the average low rate in winter and the average high rate from spring to autumn. Compared with the time series of environmental variables, the coral growth rote is only correlated statistically with seawater temperature and not related to rainfall and sunshine. Furthermore, the growth rate in spring and summer is correlated directly with seawater temperature of the winter-early spring ( between December and March ) and the other seasonal growth rate has no relationship with seasonal variations of seawater temperature. We propose that seawater temperature is one of the factors affecting the coral growth rate in the area and the low seawater temperature is a primary control of the seasonal growth rate.     

Inferring trophic variation for Antarctic krill(Euphausia superba) in the Antarctic Peninsula from the austral fall to early winter using stable isotope analysis

The Antarctic krill(Euphausia superba) is a key species in the Southern Ocean ecosystem and an important link in the food web of the Antarctic ecosystem. The trophic information for this species during the transition from the austral fall to the winter is important to understand its poorly known overwintering mechanisms. However, the few studies on the topic differ in their results, in terms of both spatial and temporal variables. We investigated the size dependence and monthly and regional variation in δ~(13) C and δ~(15) N values of adult krill in the Antarctic Peninsula, in the austral fall(April to May) and the early winter(June). We aimed to examine the trophic variations of krill occurred during this period, and the relationship between krill and their feeding environment in the Antarctic marine ecosystem. The following results were obtained:(1) no significant relationship was observed between size and the δ13 C value of krill, but the δ15 N value of krill presented a remarkable association with size;(2)the δ13 C values of krill increased during the austral fall, but no remarkable variation existed at the onset of winter,and the δ15 N values were not significant different during this period;(3) mean δ15 N values of krill differed significantly between the Bransfield Strait and the South Shetland Islands. Our data imply that adult krill present size-, season-, and region-dependent trophic variation during the transition from austral fall to early winter in the Antarctic Peninsula.     

台湾暖流水和长江冲淡水在32°N断面和PN断面上的分布及其变化

Based on six=cruise data gathered along 32°N and PN sections fron 1987 to 1998,we examined variations of water mass distribution and associated circulation in the westem part of the East China Sea with the emphasis on the behaviors of the Taiwan Warm Current Water and Changjiang(Yangtze)Diluted Water.It is found that the Diluted Water is Limited in the west of 122.5°E～123°E along 32°N and PN sections in autumn,winter and spring,but extends to 122.5°E～126°E in summer,especially in summer of 1998. Along the PN section, the Taiwan Warm Current (TWC)Water is found all year round,especially in deeper layer.It has significant seasonal and interannual variations which is the strongest in winter and relatively weaker in winter and relatively weaker in spring,summer and fall.The deep water carried by the TWC along 123°E～123.5°E tends to reach the north of 28°N even 30°N not only in warm seasons but also in cold seasons in even greater strength.It is noteworthy that the TWCwater was also strong in the flood summer of 1998.In general,the TWC water acts weakly in the north of 32°Nsection.However in spring of 1994.the body of the TWC water in salinity at 33.5 was found along 32°N section.It seems the extreme of the TWC water's northward intrusion with the depth in summer,but does not in winter.     

基于卫星遥感的潮滩植被、高程、潮沟空间关系探讨-以崇明东滩为例

The analysis of vegetation-environment relationships has always been a study hotspot in ecology. A number of biotic, hydrologic and edaphic factors have great influence on the distribution of macrophytes within salt marsh.Since the exotic species Spartina alterniflora(S. alterniflora) was introduced in 1995, a rapid expansion has occurred at Chongming Dongtan Nature Reserve(CDNR) in the Changjiang(Yangtze) River Estuary, China.Several important vegetation-environment factors including soil elevation, tidal channels density(TCD),vegetation classification and fractional vegetation cover(FVC) were extracted by remote sensing method combined with field measurement. To ignore the details in interaction between biological and physical process,the relationship between them was discussed at a large scale of the whole saltmarsh. The results showed that Scirpus mariqueter(S. mariqueter) can endure the greatest elevation variance with 0.33 m throughout the marsh in CDNR. But it is dominant in the area less than 2.5 m with the occurrence frequency reaching 98%. S. alterniflora has usually been found on the most elevated soils higher than 3.5 m but has a narrow spatial distribution. The rapid decrease of S. mariqueter can be explained by stronger competitive capacity of S. alterniflora on the high tidal flat. FVC increases with elevation which shows significant correlation with elevation(r=0.30, p0.001). But the frequency distribution of FVC indicates that vegetation is not well developed on both elevated banks near tidal channels from the whole scale mainly due to tidal channel lateral swing and human activities. The significant negative correlation(r=–0.20, p0.001) was found between FVC and TCD, which shows vegetation is restricted to grow in higher TCD area corresponding to lower elevation mainly occupied by S. mariqueter communities. The maximum occurrence frequency of this species reaches to 97% at the salt marsh with TCD more than 8 m/m2.     

棉兰老流和棉兰老潜流在季节尺度上的关系研究

The ocean general circulation model for the earth simulator(OFES) products is applied to estimate the transports of the Mindanao Current(MC) and the Mindanao undercurrent(MUC) and explore the relation between them on seasonal scale. In general, the MUC is composed of the lower part of the Southern Pacific Tropical Water(SPTW)and Antarctic Intermediate Water(AAIW). While the deep northward core below 1 500 m is regarded as a portion of MUC. Both salinity and potential density restrictions become more reasonable to estimate the transports of MC/MUC as the properties of water mass having been taken into consideration. The climatological annual mean transport of MC is(37.4±5.81)×10~6 m~3/s while that of MUC is(23.92±6.47)×10~6 m~3/s integrated between 26.5 σ_θ and 27.7 σ_θ, and(17.53±5.45)×10~6 m~3/s integrated between 26.5 σ_θ and 27.5 σ_θ in the OFES. The variations of MC and MUC have good positive correlation with each other on the seasonal scale: The MC is stronger in spring and weaker in fall, which corresponds well with the MUC, and the correlation coefficient of them is 0.67 in the OFES.The same variations are also appeared in hybrid coordinate ocean model(HYCOM) results. Two sensitive experiments based on HYCOM are conducted to explore the relation between MC and MUC. The MUC(26.5σ_θ27.7) is strengthening as the MC increases with the enhancement of zonal wind field. It is shown,however, that the main part of the increasement is the deeper northward high potential density water(HPDW),while the AAIW almost remains stable, SPTW decreases, and vice versa.     

Seasonal variations of dimethylsul.de (DMS) and dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) in the sea-surface microlayer and subsurface water of Jiaozhou Bay and its adjacent area

The distributions of DMS and its precursor dimethylsulfoniopropionate, in both dissolved (DMSPd) and particulate fractions (DMSPp) were determined in the sea-surface microlayer and corresponding subsurface water of the Jiaozhou Bay, China and its adjacent area in May and August 2006. The concentrations of all these components showed a clear seasonal variation, with higher concentrations occurring in summer. This can be mainly attributed to the higher phytoplankton biomass observed in summer. Simultaneously, the enrichment extents of DMSPd and DMSPp in the microlayer also exhibited seasonal changes, with higher values in spring and lower ones in summer. Higher water temperature and stronger radiant intensity in summer can enhance their solubility and photochemical reaction in the microlayer water, reducing their enrichment factors (the ratio of concentration in the microlayer to that in the corresponding subsurface water). A statistically signi.cant relationship was found between the microlayer and subsurface water concentrations of DMS, DMSP and chlorophyll a, demonstrating that the biogenic materials in the microlayer come primarily from the underlying water. Moreover, our data show that the concentrations of DMSPp and DMS were signi.cantly correlated with the levels of chlorophyll a, indicating that phytoplankton biomass might play an important role in controlling the distributions of biogenic sulfurs in the study area. The ratios of DMS/chlorophyll a and DMSPp/chlorophyll a varied little from spring to summer, suggesting that there was no obvious change in the proportion of DMSP producers in the phytoplankton community. The mean sea-to-air .ux of DMS from the study area was estimated to be 5.70 μmol/(m2 ·d), which highlights the e.ects of human impacts on DMS emission.     

Ecology of Pinnidae (Mollusca: Bivalvia) from the Gulf of Thailand

The ecology of the family Pinnidae was studied by sampling three pinnid species from 36 sampling sites across four different microhabitats in the Gulf of Thailand. The species spatial distributions were mostly uniform, with some populations having random distributions. Species abundances differed between sandy and coral habitats according to non-metric multi-dimension scaling analyses. Although the Gulf of Thailand is a relatively small geographic area, habitats are varied enough to provide variable shell densities. Small islands are important distribution areas, and coral reefs provide both direct and indirect shelter which support high abundances, densities and increased shell size. The highest density was recorded in sand beds within coral reefs. Low density and small shell size in sand beaches might be related to high mortality in shallow water or to adaptations for survival in shallow waters. A clear correlation between sediment composition and species abundance was found in Pinna atropurpurea; abundance increased with the sand content of the sediment. For P. deltodes, abundance increased as the rock fraction of the sediment increased. These results suggest that adaptations in Pinnidae, such as shell size, shell morphology, and the exposure of the shell above the sediment-water interface, are responses for survival in different habitats.